Do Not Stand at My Grave and Cry
by TheDancingMelon
Summary: "-I am not there, I did not die." Alternatively, the Full-Score Trio are reborn into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. *Manga Spoilers*
1. Chapter 1

Norman had always been a very strange child, Narcissa couldn't help but think as she watched her oldest butter his toast, a seemingly serene smile on his lips.

Yes, Norman Malfoy had always been strangely aloof, always smiling politely while his eyes remained cold. Always aware, always analyzing every aspect of a situation in order to turn the spoils in his favor.

In short, the perfect Slytherin.

Narcissa held back a sigh as she delicately sipped on her tea, barely acknowledging the house-elf that removed her finished plate from the table.

Her youngest was also busy, busy trying to gain his big brother's attention, no matter in what form.

Draco had always looked up to his brother but rarely had he gotten any of the positive attention that he so desperately craved. Norman had always seemed annoyed by the younger's fruitless attempt, in fact, he had always seemed annoyed by any interaction that he had with the other young heirs and heiresses. Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, Parkinson, none of the children had been shown anything other than cold politeness from the Malfoy heir. Or well, the past Malfoy heir if Norman's discussion with Lucius the other day were to be believed.

Narcissa shook her head as she watched her oldest take a bite out of the sandwich, an open book placed beside him that he idly glanced over at every few minutes. Yes, her oldest was very strange indeed but she couldn't fathom having him in any other way.

* * *

The first time Norman Malfoy had cried had been when he realized how alone he was. He had cried almost constantly for the second half of his first year in this life. Neither Narcissa nor Lucius had been able to wrap their heads around this strange, nearly constant, crying.

Previous to Norman's crying spell, he'd been a perfectly silent and content child. Rarely making a sound other than when he was watching something that fascinated him. Only then would his big blue eyes widen and his lips quirk up, tiny fingers would wave excitedly in the air as he tried to grab onto whatever was the focus of his fascination.

So it was to the surprise of no one when both Narcissa and Lucius flustered over their so usually quiet child's epic temper tantrum. Only after weeks and weeks of Norman constantly crying until he cried himself unconscious did he quiet down again. As relieved as the new parents were they still to this day couldn't for the life of them figure out what had been wrong in the first place.

Only Norman knew, only Norman knew who his small fingers had been trying to grab onto, and so it would remain.

* * *

When Norman and Draco celebrated their 6th birthday something changed. Very, very drastically.

Draco was still always toddling after Norman, trying to copy his, strangely enough, paler twin as he walked around most of the time outright ignoring his younger brother in favor of observing his surroundings.

Narcissa was still worried about her oldest indifference towards her youngest but mostly let things be. It wasn't as if Norman went out of his way to taunt or otherwise turn the younger away, he simply didn't care.

Lucius didn't really see the problem, but unlike Narcissa Malfoy neé Black he had never had any siblings and was therefore not an expert on the matter. Narcissa, on the other hand, was more than aware of the different typical sibling relationships and a grand total of none applied to this situation.

There was no rivalry, no close comradeship, no power struggles, there was just… Nothing at all that indicated that the two of them were brothers, nevermind twins. The only thing that spoke of their true relationship was the way Draco would trail after Norman, not completely unlike a puppy. Narcissa didn't share her worries with her husband but she was worried. Both over Draco's obvious need for comradeship but also Norman's standoffish behavior. In truth, she needn't worry about Norman, the solution, surprising and unorthodox as it was, came strolling into their life all on its own.

The 5th of June, a party was thrown in the twins' honor and a lot changed after that day.

Draco had, unsurprisedly, been surrounded by his friends. It had been obvious that the younger boy enjoyed absorbing the attention he didn't receive from his brother. He was for once, not toddling after Norman like he usually did. He truly flourished under the attention of young Pansy Parkinson and the far larger but definitely duller Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe.

Norman was, unsurprisingly, unbothered by the lack of his humanoid tail and took turns between visiting the adults for polite chatter and hide away under one of the trees, an open book in his lap that he had gotten from Narcissa earlier that very same day.

And then Severus Snape and his son had turned up.

Lucius had been unsurprised by the boy's presence, he had known for a long time that his close friend and children's godfather had his own son, even though he hadn't seen the boy since the child had been a baby.

Ray Snape looked up at him, a neutral mask facing the word while intelligent eyes scanned his entire being. In a way, Lucius had been reminded of his oldest son. The boy had nodded politely and then looked at the side before freezing. Curious, Lucius and Snape had exchanged a look before turning towards whatever had caught the black-haired child's attention.

Norman stood a short distance away, his book carelessly laid out on the ground while the boy stared wide-eyed at Ray.

Neither of the boys moved.

Lucius frowned, unsure what was the cause of his otherwise so stoic child's strange behavior, he opened his mouth, prepared to ask what was wrong but was immediately interrupted as Ray practically levitated towards Norman's still stiff form.

He stopped shortly before the white-haired child, absorbing the features before breaking out in a shaky but exhilarated grin.

"Hello, stupid Norman."

Lucius and Severus flinched as if hit, Severus eyebrows almost disappearing in his hairline as he stared, borderline gaping at his son's strange behavior and outrageous greeting. Norman blinked a couple of times, clearly struggling to wrap his head around the other boy's appearance but quickly returned the dark haired boy's smile with one of his own dazzling, _genuine_ smiles.

"Hi, idiot Ray."

Lucius and Severus were quickly lost in translation. They exchanged a wary glance with each other before they began to retreat towards Narcissa who still remained blissfully unaware of this strange turn of events. Busy as she was with entertaining the guests and keeping an eye on Draco, it was no wonder she'd miss this strange interaction but she would no doubt want to hear about it.

Ray and Norman were inseparable from this day onward.

* * *

"Do you think she's here?" Norman asked as he leaned against Ray's side.

Ray didn't answer immediately, he didn't even look up from his book but instead turned the page as he gently bumped his head against Norman's.

"Probably." He answered after a moment. "Knowing her, there's no way she'd stay behind if we're here."

Norman smiled.

* * *

Draco Malfoy was not impressive, was the short and rather final opinion that Ray had concerning the youngest Malfoy. He was whiny, spoiled and in general a headache that wouldn't leave them alone.

Norman 'befriending' Ray had apparently been the equivalent of pouring gasoline on a dying flame. Ray had silently despaired as he'd been introduced to the younger Malfoy twin and wasn't that a shock, Norman had a twin. Draco had taken one good look at him, seen the way Norman held an ironclad grasp around his hand while smiling benevolently towards Ray and had promptly declared the son of Snape his rival.

Ray had in turn taken one good look at the interaction between the twins and gotten to the uncomfortable conclusion that Norman simply didn't like Draco. Norman not liking someone wasn't strange in itself, it was just the unholy combination of Norman not liking someone that obviously wanted to be liked by him.

For being such a genius, Norman sure as hell could be dumb.

Which is why he was stuck in this uncomfortable position.

Norman was happily leaning against him, buried in whatever book he'd gotten ahold of while affectionately nuzzling the top of his head against Ray's jaw. Ray didn't mind, not really, he just wasn't as immune against the startled stares from their parents, nor was he immune against the youngest jealous glares.

"Are you trying to get me murdered?" He accused under his breath as he changed page. The book was rather interesting, he couldn't wait until he could get access to the more complicated rune-books.

Norman paused mid-nuzzle, eyed him before giving him a close-eyed smile before continuing to brush his head against Ray's.

"If the brat tries anything I'll throw him off the roof." Ray winced. Draco must have fucked up royally then.

"Emma wouldn't approve." He tried uneasily, gently closing his book (he'd continue with it whenever he got home) and placing it beside him.

Norman remained quiet.

Ray sighed and leaned his head against the wall, filing away whatever arguments for treating the kid less cooly for another date. For now, he'd just bask in Norman's presence.

* * *

"I bet you'll be a Ravenclaw." Norman suddenly voiced from where he sat, practically on top of Ray.

"I bet you'll be a Slytherin," Ray said instead as he turned the page. He sighed a bit as he rested his head on his right hand, feeling the weight of Norman who practically laid spread out over his back. Truth to be told he hadn't put much thought into the sorting. "Doubt you're much of a Gryffindor, that's more up Emma's alley."

Norman merely hummed, neither agreeing or disagreeing. Ray had noticed very early into their reunion that Norman struggled with the topic of Emma. Apparently, the trauma of being separated from them once again, and this time for a much longer time, had caused a lot of Norman's inner fears to crawl back from whatever corner that Norman had swept them into. Ray had been worried in the beginning and had tried his hardest to keep Norman's clinginess to a minimum around their parents. They were already suspicious enough without the 180° turn regarding Norman's opinion when it came to physical affection. Not that they knew that Norman actually was rather affectionate and Ray usually was the more private person.

Sometimes, however, nothing would stop Norman from clinging onto Ray like a lifeline and most of the time, Ray would allow it, feeling bad for essentially forbidding Norman from the reassuring touch he knew that the other needed.

"Just another year until Hogwarts." Ray wrinkled his nose at the name while Norman let out a breathy laugh. "Maybe we'll meet her there."

"Maybe." Norman allowed before burying his face into Ray's back, refusing to ponder more on the subject and set himself up for the crushing disappointment.

* * *

When she came back to them, it was in the form of a red tornado.

They had been walking around in Diagon Alley, gathering whatever they needed for their first term. Truth to be told, neither of them were overly excited at the prospect of spending their next seven years apart, because it would be apart from each other, that they knew. Despite the fact that neither could quite outdo the other when it came to knowledge and strategic thinking both were all too aware that they were far from each other personality wise. The chance that they'd end up in the same house was close to zero.

So it was with a rather forced neutrality that they walked around the Alley, hand in hand and curiously peering around the different shops. They had ditched Narcissa and Draco a while back and would no doubt be scolded later, but for now, they enjoyed each other while they still could .

So it was to no one's surprise that they were run over just as they were falling into a rhythm of indifference.

Neither had noticed her quickly approaching footsteps until it was over and they all laid spread over the ground like toppled bottles.

Norman merely blinked, not really registering that he had indeed been collided with and was now, in fact, laying on the ground. Ray was in a similar state of shock but was much closer to snapping out of it and go off in a bout of rage directed towards the offender.

A burst of bell-like laughter filled their ears.

"I found you!" A voice they both had doubted they'd ever hear again exclaimed as arms that didn't belong to them wrapped around them tightly, a cascade of red filling their immediate line of sight.

Ray turned towards her, because who else could it possibly be.

"Emma?" The blinding smile that greeted them said enough.

Norman let out a strangled cry as he threw himself against her, collapsing into the warm comfort while keeping a tight grip around her. Ray didn't know when the decision to join his two idiots were made, he just knew that his nose was buried in her red hair and his arms tightly wound around his two most important people.

"Did you miss me?" Emma asked as if she didn't already know the answer, as if she hadn't missed them just as desperately as they had missed her.

Neither answered other than Ray's mumbled exclamation that she was an idiot. They just sat there in the middle of the road, ignoring the bustling around them.

No one let go for a very long time.


	2. Chapter 2

Things had immediately begun to look brighter in hindsight. It was like suffering through weeks and weeks of cloudy days, only to be surprised by a clear blue sky and warm light peeking through your drapes one morning. Comparing Emma to the sun wasn't necessarily the worst of comparisons. There was just a certain feeling of contentedness whenever one spent time with her. It was the reminder of better days, of days worth fighting for.

A part of Ray always thought they'd end up like Yugo, bitter, alone and haunted by 'what-ifs' and 'if onlys'. Of course, Emma would never accept that kind of existence, she didn't accept her and the other's lives on the farm so she was sure as hell not going to accept such a sad life. Ray never said anything, but a part of him felt compassion for Yugo, he didn't doubt that he could end up in the very same situation. Living for the sole purpose of living, regret and the loss of his precious people hounding his every step.

Not that the man had to suffer through that feeling for long after meeting Emma. She was naive, childish and stubborn to the point of being a danger towards herself. But she did have a certain knack for people that not even Norman could completely wrap his head around. It was with a patient smile and unwavering forgiveness and belief in her fellow humans that somehow managed to keep everything on track, despite the future being such a bleak and uncertain thing.

Living without that flame of pure will had been hard. Things had definitely improved with his and Norman's reunion, but things were still far from good, only just bearable. Now, however, Ray felt the sudden warm, almost bubbling, feeling that everything was going to turn out fine. He had them again, he had both Norman and Emma without immediate threats hanging over their collective heads. The feeling was intoxicating, it felt, almost, like freedom.

After spending god knows how long (or was it 'Merlin', now?) on crying in the middle of the street like their reunion was a solution to a long going, downright dreary, drama belonging to an era better long forgotten. They finally got their wits together. Not quite prepared to let go of each other, but still aware enough to realize that their current position was from ideal.

Since at least two-thirds of their group were morons, it was unsurprisingly Ray's role to be the responsible one. Tightening his arms once around his two idiots he finally let go and proceeded to drag them off the street and into the closest café.

Norman was still pressed against Emma as if he was afraid that she'd disappear the moment he let go of her. Ever the clingy brat, Emma held on just as desperately while she eyed Ray with a sour look for leaving their cuddle-puddle.

Rolling his eyes Ray flickered her forehead as he went to the cashier that suspiciously eyed them, and ordered three cups of chocolate. Not his first choice, but given how emotionally draining this day was setting itself up to be, he'd need the extra sugar.

Handing over the money and thanking the cashier who immediately whipped out three porcelain cups, Ray returned to the corner of the café that the three had claimed for themselves.

He sat down beside Emma who immediately leaned against him, eager for the contact that she'd been denied for the last decade.

"Guess what." She suddenly said, turned towards him with Norman's face still buried against her neck.

"What?"

Her face lit up, white teeth practically sparkling as green eyes disappeared behind closed eyelids.

"There are giraffes in this world!" Ray blinked. Blinked again, mind struggling to process the most basic of words. He threw back his head and practically exploded in laughter.

She never changed.

"Hey!" Emma protested mock offended while the white tuft of hair pressed against her began to shake in barely repressed laughter.

"Have you not seen one yet?" Ray asked instead as three cups of steaming chocolate were placed in front of them on the small table.

Emma pouted.

"No…"

"It's okay Emma," Norman said as he finally sat up, eyes slightly red but still shining with a light that Ray hadn't seen for a long time. "We'll make sure to see at least one sometime." He promised, gently keeping hold of her hand.

"Together?" She asked surprisingly meekly, her eyes traveling from Ray to Norman, a silent pleading in them.

Ray took a sip of his chocolate, closed his eyes and leaned back, a small smile playing on the edges of his lips.

"Sure."

* * *

Their shopping trip improved greatly after their unpredicted reunion. Everything was going so well that Norman feared that he'd wake up any minute. It was like a dream come true, the three of them, just walking down the bustling street, colorful stores occupying almost every inch of the buildings that framed the cobblestone paths. The sound of laughter in the air as children both older and younger than them stood pressed together, peeking through the windows that invitingly displayed various products. None of the inhabitants fearing the future, none of them warily inspecting their surroundings, none of them considering hiding from demons being part of their daily routine.

Peace.

Things truly were too good to be true.

Norman tightened his grip around Emma's hand who eagerly pulled them along as she insisted on inspecting every inch of the crowded alley. The thought of letting go, even for a moment, felt impossible. He couldn't fantom allowing Ray and Emma out of his sight, still far too wary of potential demons that he knew didn't exist here in this peaceful, foreign world.

It had been one of the first things he began to research with an almost feverish mindstate. He'd consumed mountains of old scrolls, books and even tombs in his hunt for even the briefest of mentions of his biggest fear. Or well, that was incorrect, he didn't necessarily fear _them_ but rather what they represented.

The demons that raised them with the only intention to devour them was a symbol of how powerless he was when it came to protecting his family. Their existence had caused Emma to lose her smile, to cry and had almost pushed Ray into suicide.

Yet in this world, they simply didn't exist.

Driven by his fear and loss, he'd worked through almost every book available in the Malfoy library that had even the briefest of mentions regarding anything similar to the beings that he despised so much. Nothing had turned up and he had almost cried in relief.

The next thing he began to truly research was the world he was, except this time it was a far less concentrated search and more widely spread. He looked into anything that had to do with 'wizards' and 'magic' and had been very unimpressed by the results.

Wizards were quite plainly put, lazy. There was little research into their own existence, magics existence or anything in general. Huge parts of their history had been completely wiped out from the records and a lot spoke of a society built on the weakest of mindsets. The different labels and categories that they used to sort magic into was another thing Norman had come across more than once and quite promptly hated.

Never had he read something so stupid.

A part of him had seriously considered revolting and attempt to build up another system from scratch, the current system in place was a complete waste of both talent and effectiveness and deserved to die a painful death. He had quickly pushed away that thought, however. He couldn't care less about this flawed system, the moment he got of age he'd move somewhere reclusive and spend the rest of his days in complete misery.

What was the point if there was no Emma and Ray to help him and share his outrage.

The thought hadn't crossed his mind since his reunion with Ray and had only returned to the forefront of his mind when Emma began to ask about everything between Hogwarts and the political system in place.

"I say we let it be." Norman admitted. He wasn't overly fond of anything in this strange new world. Between the systematic oppression of certain races as well as the sheep-like mentality from the citizens, not to mention the way the 'Purebloods' reminded him of the Poachers back in their world. Well, let's just say that Norman wasn't particularly impressed. The part of him that was inclined to help Emma and completely weed out the corrupted parts of this system was nothing compared to the part of him that just wanted the three of them safe somewhere else.

He had a feeling that Ray agreed with him if his scowl were to be translated correctly when Emma brought it up. And had that not been a pain, explaining to Emma about the admittedly disgusting arrangement and classification of Purebloods, Half-bloods, and Muggleborns.

She'd been surprised, a bit horrified but otherwise crushed before the similar flare of stubbornness began to spark in her eyes.

Truth to be told, Norman had been dreading this.

"No," Ray growled from where he stood, slightly turned away from Emma as he critically eyed the list of books that they would have to buy for their first term.

"What?" Emma asked with an air of innocence that the boys didn't believe for a second.

"No, we're not turning this backwatered system over and causing a revolution in this world. We've done more than enough as it is."

"But-!"

"Emma." Norman interrupted with a soft smile. "This society has had more than enough time to righten itself and prosper, there are no dangers like the demons from our worlds, nor any 'good' and 'evil', only bad and worse."

"So let's change it!" Emma proclaimed, her wild locks bouncing as she straightened from where she sat crouched in front of a bookshelf. "We're going to live in this world too, you know!"

"Not necessarily," Ray muttered as he finally fished out a particularly thick book. His pale hands opening the book in the middle as he critically scanned the writer's writing style, clearly deciding to judge it's worth based on the presentation of said material.

"Emma." Norman voiced again, an impossible softness to the name. He would probably never tire of calling out their names, not after having to go so long without needing to.

"We're 11 here, children in the eyes of the world. Why waste that?"

Emma pouted before nodding, clearly deciding that she'd rather just hang out with them instead of launching another revolution. Not that Norman doubted the success of a movement like that, Emma had more than enough charisma to achieve such a thing, especially in a world as weak-minded as this one was turning out to be.

"You're right." She agreed. "But if it gets worse we'll do something, right?" She eyed them with her large green eyes.

Ray sighed while Norman merely chuckled a bit.

"You never change, idiot," Ray grumbled as he put back the book, grabbing ahold of Emma's shoulder and pushing her towards the desk where a harassed looking cashier stood, momentarily alone.

They purchased what they needed and were quickly out on the streets again. Norman couldn't help but completely bask in Ray and Emma's presence, even as they bickered childishly.

He had missed this.

"Ah!" Emma suddenly exclaimed with a horrified expression, stopping in the middle of their walk. "What time is it?!"

Ray blinked before lifting his right hand, critically eyeing the delicate watch on his wrist.

"A couple of minutes past three, how so-"

"Oh no!" Emma practically screeched as she grabbed her head, fingers digging into her hair bottom. "I was supposed to meet up with Professor McGonagall by the entrance ten minutes ago!"

Norman blinked. Right, Emma was a Muggleborn, of course, she'd have an escort.

Truth to be told, he'd never meet the woman, he'd only heard vague rumors of her being strict and the head for the House of Gryffindor. Ray winced slightly as Emma uttered the Professor's name, Norman decided to ask him about that later, few things would cause such a reaction and anything that did deserve more than all of Norman's attention.

He smiled warmly, ignoring the painful twist inside him as he realized that he would have to say goodbye to Emma. No matter how short their separation was, it was still painful and in his opinion far too early. In fact, he could probably go years without having to separate from them and still consider it too early.

"Well, I'm sure it's fine." He tried to comfort, an attempt that failed spectacularly as Ray blanched at the idea.

Norman cleared his throat.

"It's only been a couple of minutes." He reasoned, "We'll just go there now right away, the term hasn't even started yet, what's the worst she can do?"

Emma sighed before straightening, grabbing her packets filled to the brim with shrunken school supplies.

"Yeah, let's."

* * *

It took them less than five minutes to maneuver their way through the masses and reach the entrance.

A woman clad in an emerald colored long dress and a pointy hat in matching color stood by the brick wall, her hair tightly pinned up into what Norman assumed to be a bun, given that it was hidden underneath her hat, her face tightly drawn into a frown of disapproval.

"I take it that the madame is Professor McGonagall then?" Norman said unnecessarily as Emma nervously twisted her hands, keeping a tight grip around her bags. The red-head took a deep breath before slinking past Ray who warily watched the aged woman. She stopped just in front of the Professor, green eyes guiltily peering up at the woman who in turn peered down at the smaller girl over the brim of her oval glasses.

"Miss Antennae, I do presume that you have a valid reason for your tardiness." Emma opened her mouth, presumably in order to answer and possibly apologize but was promptly interrupted by Ray who burst out in laughter.

Startled, Norman turned towards his friend in alarm and was more than a little surprised to see him almost completely bend over, his bags uncaringly scattered on the ground by his feet.

Emma promptly blushed and emitted what could possibly pass for a war cry, before jumping at Ray.

Norman merely blinked, unsure what could possibly have caused such a reaction from not only Ray but Emma as well.

"Shut up stupid Ray!" Emma hissed, her face still matching her hair as the lock on top of her head wildly whipped back and forth like the tail of an irritated cat.

Norman smiled somewhat forcefully before turning towards the Professor who looked startled by their appearance.

"I'm sorry, Emma is late because of us, we meet up and got a bit carried away." He informed her with a serene smile.

The aged woman looked at him critically and Norman realized that the rumored strictness was no jest.

"I see. Very well, Miss Antennae-" Norman noted with surprise how Ray seemed to choke at the name while Emma blushed, "while meeting friends is good and all, we need to return back now, I still have other students to accompany today." She gave Emma a tight-lipped smile that wasn't unkind before turning towards Norman and Ray. "I do assume that I'll be meeting you the first of September, Mister Snape and?" She turned towards Norman searchingly.

"Malfoy."

Professor McGonagall's eyebrow quirked in surprise but she quickly recovered and nodded, albeit warily in Norman's direction.

Emma looked at Ray and Norman for a bit, studying their features in a way that Norman realized that he and Ray probably were doing in turn as well. Clearly, the separation wouldn't just be difficult for him.

His chest twinged painfully again and he immediately stepped into her hug as she opened her arms invitingly. The three of them stood there for what felt like an eternity, tightly wound around each other before they unwillingly separated.

"See you, Emma," Norman said, not as a goodbye but rather as a promise, he felt Ray sneak his hand into his and reflexively tightened his grip around the hand. He didn't know if he was strong enough for this, to let her slink away and into the dangers that the outer world contained alone without either him or Ray. It didn't matter that this world was at least a hundred times safer than their world, any situation where he couldn't personally check up on them was a dangerous unknown.

Emma positively beamed at them. Her smile settling some of his fear while causing his heart to ache in preparation for the separation.

"First of September, don't forget blockheads."

* * *

Everything became duller the moment the wisp of red disappeared into the pub, the wooden door closing with a finality that made Norman cling to Ray, desperate to ensure that he wouldn't just disappear as well. Ray, in turn, was completely still, black eyes watching the door with an intensity that would alarm any attentive adult. Luckily, Diagon Alley had a distinct lack of those.

Ray inhaled deeply before exhaling in a rush, forcing his shoulders to relax and his fingers to stop clenching Norman's hand and his bag.

They would see her again.

"Let's go." He quietly urged Norman as he began to pull the somewhat unresponsive boy deeper into the crowd.

"I don't know where Narcissa is but we should probably meet up with her before they send out a search party or something." He muttered as he tried to remember in which order the Malfoy's had planned to go about their shopping trip.

Norman hummed without much gusto, clearly still sulking.

Ray rolled his eyes. "Geez, it's not like she's gone forever you know."

"We don't know that."

Ray stopped. His eyes turning towards Norman who stood still, head tilted forwards with his fringe hiding his eyes. Ray blinked down towards where their hands were joined. Norman's fingers were practically digging into the vulnerable flesh, leaving angry red half circles all over his pale skin.

"We barely know anything about the Muggle world," Norman spoke up, fingers tightening around Ray's hand. "What if something happens? What if-" He was promptly interrupted as Ray smacked the top of his head hard, eyes watering in betrayal Norman looked up towards the older boy before scowling heavily.

"Don't be an idiot. She has a better track record of keeping herself safe. Can't really say the same for us though." Ray smirked, hiding his own uneasiness. Emma was resourceful when her strength failed her, yes, but she did also have the annoying knack of somehow tumble into what seemed to be a moderately dangerous situation that promptly began to spiral downwards into deadly-territory. If he didn't know better, he'd say she did it on purpose to keep him and Norman on their toes.

Norman's face pinched slightly before he nodded in agreement. He held that expression for a bit before relaxing with a decidedly put-out sigh.

"Let's just find Mother and go home." He grumbled.

* * *

Just like they assumed, Narcissa was far from happy when they finally caught up with her outside Gringotts. She had almost exploded in anger as they silently appeared out of nowhere, hand in hand and arms filled with the necessary equipment for their schooling.

Realizing that whatever scolding she gave them wouldn't have much effect, especially not given how they were in public, Narcissa settled on banning them both from the library for the rest of their stay. Truth to be told, there was just about a month until they would leave, and more importantly, meet Emma again, but it would still feel like an eternity. Especially since there would be a lack of distractions if they now were banned from the one place filled with distractions.

A month. Four and a half weeks until they would meet Emma.

Ray didn't imagine the slight tightening around his hand as they realized that the perceived 'short' separation would be far longer than they wanted it to be. Then again, they had waited 11 years, another month shouldn't be that much of a difference.

Except it was.

Sighing, Ray tried his best to look attentive as Narcissa scolded them in a low voice, clearly trying to get as much off her chest as possible before they would return and she could yell at them for real.

Draco stood slightly behind Narcissa, a put-out look on his features as he slightly glared at Ray.

Apparently realizing that she was fighting a losing battle, Narcissa ushered them towards the closet Floo Network. A pained look on her fair features as she just barely withheld a sigh.

"Ray, I hope you realize that your father will hear of this. The same goes for you Norman." She looked at them, clearly expecting a response only to shake her head in exasperation as both Norman and Ray looked at her with a deadpan expression.

"Honestly, you two." She trailed off with a sigh. Ray was a bit impressed, Narcissa was not the most open of people, preferring to keep her mask on while out and solve whatever issue in the privacy of her home. For her to show this much personality in an open setting, well she must've really been worried.

Ray took a fist of the Floo-Powder, stepped into the fireplace with the location on the tip of his tongue as he gained brief eye contact with Norman.

"Malfoy Manor."

With closed eyes, he promptly disappeared in a flare of green fire.

* * *

Norman sighed as he stared out through the window, idly observing as the white peacocks strutted around, their forms fading in and out of sight thanks to the fog that occupied large parts of the area. The fog had crept in sometime after dinner, the heavy cloud-like mass covering just about everything below a certain height.

Ray was already gone, Snape had arrived shortly after they finished eating in order to pick up his son. His duties at Hogwarts had been momentarily put on hold, giving him an opportunity to spend time with his son before the school year started. This did, of course, mean that Norman would see very little of Ray for the last month, leaving him completely alone.

Norman hated this, these states in between when Ray was gone and there was little else to do. He wasn't even allowed into the library thanks to Narcissa's punishment that Lucius completely supported. Even Snape had shown an intention to maintain the punishment when he learned what had warranted it in the first place, meaning that Norman wouldn't be alone in his suffering, as little comfort as that knowledge offered.

Hours later and Norman could still practically feel his ears ringing in the aftermath of Narcissa and Lucius joined scolding. Not that he regretted it, or would, even if the punishment was unusually cruel for the usually so doting parents. No, he wouldn't exchange the time he had spent with Ray and Emma, not even with the promise of allowing him into the library again.

He sighed, slowly tapping his temple against the cool glass in restlessness.

"A sickle for your thoughts?" A soft voice spoke from the door opening.

Norman glanced up and was unsurprised to see Narcissa. She was, as usual, dressed in a long, simple but elegant gown, a dark shawl wrapped around her shoulders to seemingly ward of the chill.

He felt the usual polite smile crawl itself up to the surface, his mask once again impenetrable to everyone except Ray and Emma. If Narcissa's expression wavered slightly and gained a hint of sadness, well, he was very good at pretending to miss small signs like that.

"I doubt it's worth that much Mother," Norman replied easily. He couldn't refer to this woman as Mom, no. That title belonged to Isabella, whether he liked it or not.

"Well…" She trailed off as she entered the room, gracefully taking a seat in front of Norman on the other end of the window frame. "I would say that depends on who's asking. Your thoughts matter to me."

Norman merely smiled.

"Did anything happen? In Diagon Alley?" She asked after a while. Her perfect eyebrows furrowing in worry. For one painful moment, Norman was reminded of Isabella. Both women had a certain grace to them that few could match or even attempt to copy, not to mention their outlandish ability to radiate love and kindness despite the reality behind their actions and beliefs. Sure, Narcissa was nowhere near the same level as Isabella who had essentially raised her children for slaughter, but Narcissa was no saint either, not with what she silently condoned.

"Nothing much," Norman answered instead, keeping the memory Emma close to his chest as he met her searching gaze head-on. "It was a normal shopping trip with Ray, neither of us fancied being dragged around by Draco."

Something similar to hurt flickered in Narcissa's eyes.

"He's a sweet boy." She said defensively. Norman merely smiled, opting to remain quiet on that particular topic. Narcissa sighed, she was far more open in the shelter of her home.

"He just wants your attention, he wants his _big brother's_ attention." She said meaningly.

"Hmm." Norman hummed in reply.

"I think," Narcissa continued, grabbing ahold of Norman's hand and squeezing it gently. "I think that you would come to truly love him if you got to know him a bit more. I am aware that he comes off as a bit pushy but…" She trailed off again, instead choosing to simply squeeze Norman's hand in affection before letting go completely.

"Sometimes I wish I knew exactly what's going on inside that mind of yours." his mother said affectionately, cupping Norman's left cheek lovingly before retreating towards the doors, her heels clicking rhythmically against the dark wooden floor.

"Goodnight Norman." She said softly, closing the door with a soft click.

* * *

Emma could practically feel the old buzzing of excitement vibrate under her skin. It was finally time, after weeks and weeks and what felt like an eternity of waiting, it was finally time.

She was finally, _finally_ going to meet Ray and Norman again!

If dying of joy was a thing, she would probably have dropped dead by now.

"Hello, our one and only Overlady of Chaos." twin voices spoke completely in tune with each other, Emma turned around and practically beamed as her view was filled with freckles.

"Fred, George! I didn't notice you disappeared!" her eyes wandering between the identical grinning faces. She still couldn't believe it, that the big family in that strange and alluring house was magic as well! A part of her might've sulked a bit over the fact that none of them had mentioned over the years of playing tag and roughhousing that they were wizards (and witch in Ginny's case), but that part of her had promptly been demolished as she'd been reunited with Norman and Ray again.

The meeting with the Weasley family had been completely accidental and supposedly close to impossible, and in retrospect, completely expected if Ray had been there to voice his opinion. It had been during one of her worse days when her usual energy and spirit had failed and left her with little strength to do anything else but lie down in bed.

At some point, she'd decided that enough was enough, she couldn't just lie down in bed and wait for Norman and Ray to trip over her and into her life, no, if she wanted to find them she'd have to work for it.

Perhaps it was her 'idiotic self' speaking as Ray would call it, but she had a feeling that neither of her boys where somewhere she couldn't follow. Despite the fact that she had no evidence to prove her 'gut-feeling' she rolled with it, opting to remain active and keep her doubts and soul-crushing loneliness on the lowest level she could keep it on. She began to explore the world around her, read books upon books about any subject she could find.

A spark of childish joy had been lit as she realized that there were giraffes in this world. She had sworn, then and there as she watched a video of the massive yellow animal serenely munching on leaves, that she'd see at least one before she kicked the bucket in this world as well. But seeing her favorite animal alone would be sad so she buried her desire deep within herself in a metaphorical box were she kept Norman and Ray, deciding that she'd see it together with them when she found them.

When knowledge and perfect grades couldn't fill her void anymore she decided that she would need to start training again. Sure there were no demons here but that was no excuse to remain inactive when Norman and Ray could have wandered into any sort of danger. She ignored the tiny voice that resembled Ray's that angrily muttered in the back of her head that it was her that wandered into dangerous situations, not them.

So she began to explore further away from the small Village of Ottery St. Catchpole and had one day, quite literally stumbled onto Weasley owned soil. Till this day, she still wasn't sure who was more surprised, she or the group of red-headed children she'd come across during one of her explorations.

Being a person who craved social interaction, Emma had found instant kinship. It wasn't just about the similar coloring but also the simplicity of it all, their home and daily activities reminding her keenly of home. The big family with seven kids had reminded her of a simpler time back at the Grace Field House. Despite how horrible it had all turned out to be, she missed it a lot. She missed her siblings and maybe that's why a group of siblings this size with their clashing personalities were like a balm to her tattered soul.

They had instantly become friends, all of them, there was always some sort of understanding with every member of the family despite her being so different from them and them different amongst themselves. She understood the older siblings, Bill and Charlie's struggle with just being older, Percy's struggle to always stay on top with his grades and studies, the twins' trouble with being taken seriously and still remain joking and easygoing. She understood Ron's secret struggle of being the 'last choice' so to speak, to never truly excel at anything because his siblings had already achieved it at some point, and yet to always try and leave his mark in some way. She understood Ron because he reminded her of Don.

She understood Ginny's struggle of being the only girl in a family of boys, and while she personally hadn't been considered the younger sister, in the same way, her youngest sisters had shared more than enough for her to have some sort of understanding in general.

Perhaps that understanding made her so easy for the siblings to befriend, she would happily listen to the three older brothers fanatic ramble about their various interests, join the twins during their many and creative pranks, take time to listen and play a game or two with Ron and of course, roughhouse with Ginny. After all, despite the younger girl's brothers statements that they'd deal with any trouble from the male population, Emma figured that it'd be better if Ginny was capable of taking care of it herself. Not to mention that the boost to the shy girl's ego would do wonders in the long run.

"Hear that Forge, our lowly presence has been rejected." Fred's voice snapped her back to reality.

"I hear that Gred, it truly is a shame. Whatever are two lowly peasants supposed to do without their omniscient Overlady?"

Emma rolled her eyes before promptly dropping her annoyed expression in favor of a smile. Not even the twins mocking could possibly keep her down today, not that their 'mocking' was as much mocking as it was joking typically.

"You two are dolts." She informed them lightly before grabbing ahold of their arms and physically dragging them towards the direction where she could vaguely hear the Weasley Matriarch.

"You know," Fred began from Emma's left side, "For being so tiny, you sure as Merlin are strong." George finished from her right side.

Emma stuck out her tongue at them before promptly stopping in front of what seemed to be a simple pillar in the middle of the station. Truth to be told, she'd never been at King's Cross Station before, just to London once on a brief trip that still filled her with joy to just think about.

"Oh, Emma! There you are, I was getting worried you got lost!" Molly Weasley stressed as she began to fix Emma's shirt, straightening it before moving on to her twins who grinned merrily towards her.

"What is this?" George began dramatically, holding a hand over his heart with his mouth half open in betrayal. "No worry for your own spawn, woman." Fred tsked while 'steadying' George. Emma merely laughed, she'd never tire of their antics. Ginny and Ron, however, didn't seem to share her delight over the free comedy special and instead groaned and rolled their eyes.

Mrs. Weasley herself seemed to struggle with slapping her middle children over the head. Instead of scolding the twins she turned towards Percy who stood tall, his trunk orderly placed beside him.

"Alright, Percy, you go first." She urged her more well-behaved son who promptly began to march towards the magical pillar. Emma tilted her head to the side just as Percy disappeared through the barrier. That was actually really interesting, she'd have to ask Norman and Ray about it later. Emma wondered if either of the boys knew what magic in itself exactly was, none of the books she bought in Diagon Alley had really answered and the Weasleys were to 'used' to magic to be able to put it in a muggleborn's perspective.

Mrs. Weasley turned towards her troublesome twins with a look that spoke more than any amounts of words ever could.

"Fred, you next."

"I'm not Fred, I'm George!" Fred burst out, feigning true offense. "Honestly, woman, call yourself our mother? Can't you _tell_ that I'm George?"

Emma laughed as Mrs. Weasley was quick to placate her 'offended' son, who, in turn, was quick to reveal himself to be Fred all along before promptly disappearing through the barrier.

Emma shared a glance with Ginny who merely rolled her eyes at her older brother's antics before beginning to whine at her mother again, obviously not particularly keen on being left alone when all her siblings disappeared off to Hogwarts.

George was quick to follow his brother, leaving the rest of them behind with a cheeky wink. Emma was just about to follow but stopped as she realized that a skinny boy had smoothly joined their group, nervousness practically radiating off him.

"Excuse me." He spoke up, green eyes flickering nervously between them before finally settling on Mrs. Weasley who immediately turned towards him upon being addressed.

"Hullo, dear. First time at Hogwarts? Ron and Emma are new too." Mrs. Weasley informed warmly as she motioned towards the younger redheads.

"Yes." The boy spoke up, a thin hand quickly adjusting his- Emma narrowed her eyes at the obviously _broken_ glasses before uneasily shrugging it off. "The thing is- the thing is, I don't know how to-" the boy stuttered only to be kindly but firmly interrupted by Mrs. Weasley.

"How to get on to the platform?" the boy nodded.

Mrs. Weasley reached out and gently adjusted the boy until he was turned towards the pillar.

"Not to worry. All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. Don't stop and don't be scared you'll crash into it, that's very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous. Go on, go now before Emma." Mrs. Weasley informed promptly, clearly startling the boy slightly if his twitchy behavior was to be believed. Not that Emma didn't believe him, she herself would've been beyond a nervous trainwreck if she hadn't had to go through more… Nerve-wracking experiences.

"Er- Okay." And then he was off.

Emma couldn't help but feel for him as he obviously fumbled slightly on the way, his hesitation apparent in practically every movement, especially the closer he came to the barrier.

And then he was gone, vanished like the rest of the Weasleys that had run before him.

"Now then, Emma your turn!" Emma didn't need further prompting as she gleefully aimed her cart towards the barrier and rushed off before Mrs. Weasley had the time to say anything else.

Eager to see if traveling through the barrier would allow her to see something special, Emma kept her eyes wide open as she rushed towards and through the pillar. She was only briefly disappointed to see that there was close to no middle ground. You simply were on the Muggle platform one second and on platform 9¾ immediately afterward.

The disappointment was short lived however as her green eyes became impossibly wide and sparkling at the sight of the red train that stood by the platform, a white cloud of smoke steadily rising from the chimney as people bustled around her in hurry.

"Wow." She couldn't help but gasp slightly as she tried to memorize every little single detail in her new surroundings. Honestly, screw the journey through the pillar, _this_ was where the excitement was starting to become impossible to contain.

She eyed the full carts critically only to see the same boy from before walking down the platform, apparently in search for an empty seat. Emma smiled, clearly, he had the right idea.

With her trunk in front of her, Emma began to navigate through the bustling platform, here and there catching glimpses of red that practically screamed Weasley. She was disappointed to see that there was a distinct lack of Norman and Ray at the moment, but she figured that they'd arrive sometime soon.

The corners of her mouth began to climb even higher on her face as she once again was filled with that bubbling realization that she'd see her most precious people again soon! In fact, she sneaked a glance at the big clock that hung on the brick wall, at this point, it should only be a matter of minutes.

Or maybe they were already on the train, waiting for her. No doubt Ray was already complaining, that dummy, it's not her fault that Ron had gotten something close to a panic attack somewhere on their way to the station, not that she blamed him.

Seeing that the crowd had lessened a lot, Emma ducked in into the closest opening and was immediately greeted with a small hallway that ran through the middle of the train. Separating the carts into two equally big rows with compartments.

Emma felt her heart begin to race in excitement, this was happening.

Surprisingly enough, finding an empty compartment wasn't difficult, despite her initial belief that it would be a pain. The part of her that was wired to be more logical, wormed and complained that 'magic' made no sense while her more creative, or childish according to Ray, side merely took it all in one gleeful stride. After all, there was no real explanation to why a train that was so obviously cramped could have this many free compartments without magic being involved.

Never one to be too suspicious, she left that to Ray and Norman considering that they were both paranoid enough for the three of them, she immediately took over the no longer empty compartment.

Cozy was probably the best word to describe the small but smartly put together space. A big window facing the outside and two rows of seats pushed against the wall with a tiny table directly underneath the window. Peering up, Emma immediately caught sight of a shelf. Putting 2 and 2 together, she jumped up on the seat with her trunk carefully balanced in her arms and pushed in the trunk into the empty space between the roof and the shelf. Pleased with herself for managing that without asking for help, Emma plopped down to the coach.

Catching sight of a familiar nest of red, curly hair, she left the compartment and jumped down towards the platform.

"Emma!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed in relief. "Honestly, you don't waste time at all." She gently scolded before enveloping the small girl in a bone-crushing hug.

"Sorry!" Emma said grinning. She doubted Mrs. Weasley was particularly offended given how the woman merely smiled fondly before turning back towards the door with furrowed eyebrows.

"Fred? George? Are you there?" She called her eyes scanning the entrance to the cart.

"Coming, Mum!" One of the twins spoke from the train before quickly appearing in the entrance, a strange look on their features.

Satisfied that her more… Troublesome children were located, Mrs. Weasley turned towards her youngest son with a sharp look that caused said son to shift at the attention.

"Ron, you've got something on your nose." She informed him, her handkerchief already prepared as Ron fruitlessly tried to squirm away in alarm. Emma smiled broadly as Ron shoot her an annoyed look before turning towards his mother in a fruitless attempt to ward her off. Emma's broad smile turned into a more fond look at the humorous interaction before she turned towards the slowly dwindling crowd closer to the platform's entrance.

She felt her breath hitch slightly as she caught sight of a familiar mop of black hair and an equally familiar face amongst the crowd. Deaf to whatever the family of redheads was discussing Emma felt herself move in the direction of Ray.

Ray seemed to be busy talking with a dark-clad man with oily hair that stood practically hunched over Ray's smaller frame. Emma barely took any time to notice the looming man, too busy watching as Ray's lips quirked in a so familiar smirk.

Throwing caution to the wind, Emma began to fasten her pace until she was outright running through the crowd, her goal clear in her line of sight.

Ray had maybe half a second to realize what was happening before Emma physically threw herself at the taller boy with her entire weight, not that it was much. However, her little weight added with the speed built more than enough of an impact to send them both sprawling to the ground in a flurry of limbs.

"Emma!" Ray practically spat as he bristled like a harassed cat. Unable to contain her grin, Emma merely buried her face into Ray's stomach, her arms tightening around Ray in protest as he viciously grabbed ahold of her red tuft of hair.

Seeing that the red-head wasn't going to give up anytime soon, Ray became boneless underneath her with a sigh that spoke of suffering beyond the typical mortal's understanding. Only then did Emma peek up at him, grinning broadly as he merely eyed her with a glare. Not that she was bothered by it, she knew his truly annoyed look all to well to miss the soft expression underneath. Deciding to leave him with some dignity, she merely blinked at him innocently, grinning all the while as he rolled his eyes.

There was a polite but extremely strained cough coming somewhere from above them, curious, Emma turned her head upwards only to be met with the most unimpressed expression she'd ever seen. Seriously, this man could probably give Ray a run for his money with that look.

"Hi!" Emma spoke brightly, not one to be deterred by something as simple as annoyance, impressive as he was, the man held nothing against Yugo at the beginning of their friendship.

"Good morning." The man said with the most monotone voice Emma had probably ever heard. Despite the word choice, the man didn't seem to consider this morning to be particularly good at all. That is if his sour look and the downright irritated tone was something to go on.

"Emma," Ray said simply, silently signaling that it was time to get off him. For now.

Deciding that she could simply bully Ray at a later date, Emma obediently stepped of the taller boy, even going as far as to lift him off the ground while at it. Giving Emma a sour look Ray wordlessly began to brush off his clothes with a slight scrunch to his nose. He didn't complain though when Emma grabbed ahold of his hand, even as the man raised an eyebrow at the movement.

"Father." He finally said towards the man who eyed them with the intensity of a hawk, clearly unhappy with this disturbance to his day but still too unsure to handle it directly. "This is Emma, Emma this is my father and our future Potions Professor, Severus Snape." Ray politely introduced the pair, his voice almost as emotionless as his 'father's'.

Emma perked up. Potions? She'd read practically every book that had been purchased during her trip to Diagon Alley, eager to learn more about this new strange world of hers but also determined to not fall behind when the tests would begin to roll in. There was no way she was going to lose to Ray and Norman after all, even if they cheated with being born into this world rather than start from scratch like she would.

"Potions? Really?" She turned towards the man, or Professor apparently, who still had that sour unimpressed expression of his face.

"Indeed." The man said with a biting voice, the word practically squeezed through his tightly pressed together lips.

Emma stared a bit.

Yeah, she could definitely see the resemblance.

"See you then, Ray's dad!" She happily said, more than aware of how Ray slightly winced and how the professor's face did a strange twitch. "Come on Ray!" She urged the boy who lamely waved a bit in the man's direction before allowing himself to be dragged away, his cart with his trunk safely held in a tight iron grip all the while.

"Idiot." He muttered as he flickered Emma's forehead.

"What?" Emma beamed innocently. Given the unimpressed look Ray wore, he clearly doubted her sincerity. Ignoring the somewhat accusing look and with Ray's hand tightly held in hers, Emma practically skipped down the platform towards the compartment she had claimed for them.

Ray sighed but dutifully followed, clearly deciding to indulge her for a bit. She would have to seriously take advantage of Ray's, no doubt, momentarily forgiving mood. Considering how it wouldn't last long, especially since she was as excited as she was. Honestly, she was just the tiniest bit surprised that he hadn't snapped at her yet.

"I'll assume that Norman hasn't turned up yet then," Ray said softly as he eyed the red train beside them, a spark of curiosity in his dark eyes. Emma shrugged. Norman would turn up sooner or later, and if he didn't, well, she'd just have to huff a bit at him for skipping out on bonding time.

"Either that or he's further in the front." She guessed before climbing onto the cart again, this time with Ray behind her.

The Weasley's seemed busy amongst themselves and even though Emma was close to them, she still understood the importance of family bonding without interference. She eyed Ray who carefully watched the red-headed family briefly before stepping on board as well.

"I thought you were Muggleborn." He muttered with a frown as he followed Emma closely.

"I am," Emma assured her friend before giving him her own frown. "Is there a problem?" She asked pointedly.

Ray was quiet before turning towards her with a tiny smirk.

"Probably not." He assured her vaguely. Emma merely looked at him, she knew him, probably better than he knew himself and she could tell from a mile away that he wasn't telling the entire truth.

Seeing her disbelieving look Ray sighed in a 'what-can-you-do' fashion, clearly intending to keep whatever bothered him private for the time being.

Deciding to leave it be for the moment, Emma skipped into the compartment, pleased to see that it hadn't been occupied while she was gone. Not that it would necessarily be an issue given how eager she was to meet more people from this interesting world. She watched as Ray eyed the compartment briefly before lifting his trunk to the shelf above them like it had the weight of a feather. Emma smiled before sitting down on the seat closest to the window in the train's direction. It would be nice to have a couple of hours alone with Norman and Ray, hopefully without any interference this time.

Ray sat down in the seat opposite to her, a thick book already placed on the small table in front of him as he fumbled with a smaller bag that probably held smaller things that he needed quick access to. Blinking, Emma suddenly came to a realization.

"Hey, how come you don't know when Norman's going to arrive? I thought you were childhood friends here or something?" Emma asked, slightly tilting her head to the side in bewilderment.

Ray winced with an expression that practically screamed awkwardness.

"Norman's parents are trying to push Norman and Draco together in one last final attempt before they leave, having too much contact with me would jeopardize that," Ray said with a slight frown.

"Draco?" Emma had never heard that name before, but she figured he must have some sort of importance if he knew both Ray and Norman. A childhood friend perhaps?

Ray opened his mouth in order to answer but was interrupted by a knock at their window. Turning towards the window Emma began to smile as Mrs. Weasley stood outside smiling and waving.

Emma stood up immediately, opening the small part of the window that could be opened and stuck her head out through.

"Hi, Mrs. Weasley!" She greeted happily all too aware of how Ray attempted to seemingly melt into the couch he sat on.

"It's Molly, dear." Mrs. Weasley said with a slightly exasperated look on her features before seemingly deciding to save her latest attempts to rename herself for another date. "And what did I say about just disappearing like that?" She asked a bit more sternly.

Wincing slightly, properly chided, Emma made an apologetic sound in the back of her throat. "Sorry! I got distracted!" She said as sincerely as she could, despite the fact that she'd still do it again without much regret.

Mrs. Weasley waved her hands nonchalantly, clearly not thinking that it was too much of a deal. Catching sight of Ray, she tilted her head questioningly with a slight smile on her face.

"And who is this?" She asked not unkindly.

Ray smiled, expression just a tad strained but nonetheless polite.

"Ray. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Weasley."

"Nonsense dear, call me Molly." Inclining his head, Ray suddenly stood up.

"My apologies, but I'll go see if I can find Norman, I'm sure you want to say your goodbyes." He informed them politely before stepping out of the compartment, probably in search of Norman like he said.

Emma blinked a bit at Ray's abrupt departure but turned towards Mrs. Weasley with a bright smile on her face.

"Sorry about that, Ray is a bit of an idiot." She informed her with a grin.

Mrs. Weasley waved away the excuse with just the quickest disapproving frown at the insult. "Don't worry about it dearie, the poor boy is probably just nervous." Emma nodded while internally snorting at the prospect, Ray was not one to allow his nervousness to stop him from doing anything, if he was even capable of feeling that emotion to begin with. Emma pouted slightly, Ray was very good at keeping his expressions in check, even if he never truly managed to fool her and Norman nowadays.

"Yeah, probably." She agreed airily.

Mrs. Weasley smiled gently, her freckled face practically glowing from behind her flaming bangs. She might not be the textbook version of beauty, but something about the woman practically screamed of a warm and loving household with the gentle but stern touch of a mother's unconditional love.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure everything was alright." Mrs. Weasley said warmly, "I'll go check on the other boys, but promise me to take good care of yourself now!" Mrs. Weasley informed her sternly, her blue eyes sparkling a bit.

Emma nodded eagerly.

She always took good care of herself! Well sorta, maybe. Ray wouldn't agree but that's because Ray is Ray. Come to think of it, Norman would probably not agree either but well, Norman wasn't always right.

Exchanging their last farewells for the next couple of months, Mrs. Weasley eventually moved on the compartment behind her. Emma blinked, that meant that someone from the Weasley clan was sitting in one of the compartments close-by! She smiled a bit at the revelation. Having the proper time to catch up with Norman and Ray was more than necessary but she would have to make sure not to completely abandon her newer friends.

Emma picked up the book Ray had left behind, curiously peeking at the title.

She'd have to keep an eye out for that skinny boy as well, something about him triggered her well-honed big-sister instincts. If there was something she'd learn through her years as Emma the Grace Field orphan, it was to always trust your instincts and then use your smarts to confirm. It was a strange mix of logic and impulses but somehow she made it work, much to Ray's chagrin and Norman's confusion. Not surprising considering how logic-driven the two of them were.

Emma startled a bit as the compartment door slid open, revealing Ray and-.

"Norman!" Emma exclaimed joyfully as the taller boy practically fell into her arms, an equally delighted expression on his face.

"Hey now, where was my greeting?" Ray snickered as he sat down on the seat he had picked before, frowning a bit as he realized that his book had been stolen by Emma.

"I hugged you too!" Emma protested.

Norman laughed quietly, his arms still tightly wrapped around Emma and his trunk lazily left on the floor, just barely over the threshold. Frowning as she caught sight of the trunk, Emma began to wiggle out of Norman's iron grip.

Surprisingly uncooperative, Norman merely stayed put with his face buried in Emma's shoulder.

Ray rolled his eyes and left his seat again with a grumble, taking a deep breath before lifting the trunk to the almost full shelf.

"Thanks, Ray!" Norman chirped happily.

"Yeah, yeah. Just don't make a habit out of it, stupid."

"Idiot." Norman shoots back merrily, not particularly bothered by Ray's grumpiness. Letting go of Emma, the white-haired boy shuffled a bit before he was planted firmly beside Emma, facing Ray who had thrown his legs up on the other side of his couch.

"Sorry about not getting in contact," Norman said after a while of just looking at the dark haired boy. Ray sighed but didn't immediately respond, instead, he accepted his book that Emma happily handed back to him, a feat possible now without Norman's arms restraining her movements.

"Don't worry about it. we figured they'd pull something like this before Hogwarts." Norman's eyes cooled slightly for the briefest of moments before warming up again.

"Unfortunately."

Emma tilted her head to the side, understanding that she was missing a large part of the conversation.

"Hey, who's-" She was interrupted for the second time as a whistle shrieked through the air, signaling the train's departure. Emma's eyes lit up as she turned around towards the window. She watched, fascinated, as everyone on the platform began to wave with different vigor, the children that she assumed where younger siblings to the students, waving with enough force to almost knock themselves over.

Emma giggled as she watched, a pang of nostalgia and pain as she remembered _her_ younger brothers and sisters. Who knew where they were in this new world. Maybe they weren't here at all?

"It's strange isn't it?" Ray said after a moment, just as they passed the last couple of parents on the platform. The grey stone sloping downwards until it was even with the ground, and soon it was gone as well, replaced with grass.

"Yeah." Norman agreed from where he sat, leaning against the table, his left cheek pressed against his palm, blue eyes calmly watching as the scenery changed from the bustling platform to the empty railroads that took up most of the ground.

"To think we'd actually get here. I can hardly believe it, despite everything." Ray said calmly, a hint of melancholy in his voice. Emma turned around towards him with a frown.

"Don't be like that." She gently chided. "We did it, didn't we? We're actually here in the human world, about to experience boarding school and meet new people and everything!" She exclaimed with cheer. Her green eyes sparkling.

"We're not even sure if this is _the _human world, Emma," Ray argued. "I'm relatively sure that our world didn't have wizards and witches, otherwise it'd be mention sometime, _somewhere_." Emma frowned.

"Maybe not." She agreed after a brief pause. "But it's _a_ human world, with new places, new food, new adventures!" A broad smile appeared on her soft face, "And the best thing is that we'll get to experience it all together!"

Norman smiled, his blue eyes a bit lighter. As if a weight had been lifted from his smaller shoulders, something that would change with puberty.

"It's nice that you never change, Emma." He said almost wistfully. "But we're not all here are we? We're still missing a lot of people, Don, Gilda, Phil to name just a few." A sad look crossed his features. "We don't even know how we got here. For all we know, we might never see them again."

Emma flickered Norman's forehead.

"I think we died." She said bluntly, causing Ray to almost choke at the bluntness. "I'm not sure how exactly, my memories start getting real fuzzy after we meet Norman again but I'm relatively sure that we died." Norman titled his head to the side with a pondering expression. In truth, he had tried his darndest not to think about it. He hadn't wanted to face the reality that he had failed to save them, not after everything.

Ray was looking rather displeased, his jaw was clenched and his fingers that held the open book had turned white at the force he was putting into clenching the book.

"So what I'm trying to say," Emma continued"-is that there's a chance that the others survived, and that's why they're not here with us! Not to mention that all of our siblings were younger, so it'd make sense if we were reborn earlier than them if they did die." Emma looked a bit sad at the thought.

As happy as Emma was with having Ray and Norman with her again, she did feel regret and sadness at the prospect of neither of them got to live in the world they had fought for. That the world they tried so hard to change and probably managed to change if her fuzzy memories were true, was lost to them. Norman and Ray didn't deserve this, Norman who had spent too long at that other farm where suffering had surrounded him and Ray who had lived with the knowledge of the truth since his birth. Neither of them deserved to be whisked away from that world they had completely overthrown, unable to see the new world that had been birthed from their sweat and tears.

Emma's hand automatically went up to her left ear, a perfect copy of the ear she had left behind at Grace Field House. The ear she never thought she'd either see or feel again for that matter.

A cool hand caught her fingers that gently brushed against her ear shell. Emma looked up, unsurprised to see Norman's blue eyes gaze softly at her, the dark look of regret and sadness clouding his otherwise so light and bright eyes.

Emma merely smiled, telling him without saying actual words that everything was fine, she was fine, Ray was fine and this time. She'd have both ears to prove it.

* * *

Ray watched as Emma drifted away, her green eyes distantly peering through the window as her left hand went up to her left ear. Pale fingers gently brushing against the skin of her ear in a slow, circular motion.

Norman's eyes darkened at the sight. He had never truly forgiven himself for the damage his plan had caused Emma and Ray. The pale boy grabbed ahold of Emma's finger, causing her to snap her attention in his direction, successfully distracting her.

Ray gave an internal sigh of relief as Emma's eyes lost their slightly dim look and Norman lost the dark edge that to this day still triggered Ray's well-honed fight-or-fly response.

"So what's your story with the Weasleys?" Ray voiced out loud, seeing at the edge of his vision how Norman snapped to attention at the name with a slightly strained look. Emma merely turned towards Ray in surprise before a flicker of recognition sparked in her green eyes.

"Ah! I meant to ask, what's your issue with them? We're neighbors!" She asked with only the slightest hint of warning.

Ray sighed. Well, there went his hope that they'd just run into each other in Diagon Alley or something.

"Neighbours?" Norman questioned in alarm causing Emma to turn to the taller boy in surprise.

"Technically," Ray began, dragging a hand through his hair in tired exasperation. Trust Emma to become friends with one of the core families in the whole dark and light debate. "It's Norman that has a problem with them, not me."

"Norman?" Emma exclaimed in surprise. Norman was probably the last person she imagined having such issues with entire families, the Ratri clan being a rather glaring exception but considering everything, completely justified.

Norman grimaced, his pale nose scrunching up in a rare mix of frustration and disgust.

"I personally don't have any issues with them, but there's definitely bad blood between our families," Norman responded reluctantly.

"So, why does that matter to us?" Emma questioned in confusion, her hands twisting in the pale fabric that her skirt was made of.

"Idiot," Ray grumbled in frustration before leaning forward slightly, his elbows resting on the table as he began elaborating. "Putting this in the most simple and basic of terms. The Weasley family has possibly the worst of reputations in the Wizarding World, at least in the Pureblood circles. They have since long then been dubbed Blood-Traitors and are openly detested. _Especially_ by the Malfoy family. They have no money to their name nor power, they are in short the only Pureblood family to _publicly_ declare their loyalty in such manner and outright deny any kinship with the radical Purebloods while supporting Muggle-borns." Ray watched Emma closely as something akin to realization lit up her face. "So the backlash of a Malfoy, not to mention the _Malfoy heir_ becoming close friends with a Muggleborn will be bad as it is. A Muggleborn with obvious connections to the _Weasley clan_, however, will be an entirely different ballpark." Ray said with a tired look on his features. "It'll be the topic of _many_ discussions for _weeks_. And attract attention that none of us want for good reasons."

Emma looked shaken, she only had the briefest of explanations from before and had close to no experience of the true prejudice that regrettably was still far from being under control.

Ray closed his eyes momentarily. There was no way he or Norman would let anything happen to her, be it from the 'Light' side or the Dark side. Truth to be told, Ray was starting to like Norman's idea of just leaving the British Wizarding World entirely as soon as they graduated.

"But what about Ray? Won't there be similar outrage over all three of us then?" Ray blinked. Neither he or Norman knew for sure. Unlike Norman, Ray had no obvious ties to the Pureblood world thanks to the fact that he was a Halfblood. His parentage and Severus' standing in the Wizarding World and Pureblood society would ensure his immunity as long as he didn't publicly declare hatred for the Pureblood families. Still, him just being with Norman and Emma might be enough to attract some unwanted attention from both sides. Oh well, it was nothing he hadn't been through before.

"No clue, since I'm a half-blood _and_ the son of Severus Snape I'm immune enough for both sides. You guys, however," he eyed them both. "Won't be. Emma will be able to move in the 'Light' circles without much if any problem while Norman might be declared public enemy on the spot if he attempted to even approach them." Ray shrugged. Well, it's not like any of them will care about the public's opinion since it was peaceful enough.

Emma made a sound of protest at the notion.

"We'll still hang out right! Who cares about stupid structures like that, right!?"

Norman chuckled, gently patting the top of Emma's head while Ray merely sighed.

"Even if we tried to stay lowkey, you'd no doubt cause a commotion by the end of the week." Ray groused while Norman merely smiled.

"It doesn't matter what other people think." Norman agreed warmly.

"But, Norman! If you get in trouble with your family-"

"You two are my family." Norman interrupted with a hard tone. His eyes turning cold for a second before warming up as he looked at Emma lovingly. "They might be my birth parents this time around but you and Ray are still the most important thing to me." He informed, just the barest hint of red dusting his cheeks.

"Awww." Ray cooed somewhat mockingly, grinning with a familiar spark of mischief in his eyes. "You love us~"

Norman blushed furiously before throwing a well-aimed textbook in Ray's direction.

"Shut up, idiot Ray." He grumbled but didn't deny the, albeit teasing, declaration.

Emma merely laughed as Ray batted his eyelashes at the gradually redder boy. Yes, everything was just going to be just fine.

* * *

/AN: Okay, this wasn't planned. None of this monster was...

My intention was to write about their sorting and leave it at that but here I am. 11 000 words and 26 pages in and still no God. Damned. Sorting.

So yeah, hope you're happy, you'll get this outrageous chapter _and_ the closest I will get to promising another chapter without actually promising anything. I repeat. None of this was planned.

I'll give each and every one of you who commented and left kudos the credit for this chapter. I didn't honestly think that it'd get a lot of attention, if any attention at all. So to say that I was blown away is an understatement. But yeah, thank you so much for that. It really made me happy and inspired like, 98% of this chapter.

(And I know that my characterization of Emma sucked, I know, I'm terrible at writing her which is why she had barely any attention in the first chapter.)

I don't think that I need to say this at this point but I'm still going to do it lol. I'd love to hear your opinions and speculations and really whatever. So if you have the time and patience, do drop a comment on your way out. 3


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